What Handheld Console Should I Buy
Visual flare and aesthetics aside, this thing also feels amazing. It has a satisfying weight to it, and the fit in your hands is one of the best we have experienced in a long time. So you are gonna want to play on this handheld for a long time.
what handheld console should i buy
This thing can handle all of your retro gaming needs very comfortably. As we should expect from a device in 2023, it will run NES, SNES, GB, GBA, PS1, Sega Genesis, Sega Dreamcast, PSP, and many more without a hiccup. So there were no surprises there.
So if you are looking for a premium gaming handheld that sits in that sweet spot of an affordable price and an impressive ability to play tons of retro systems with ease, the Odin Pro might be the console for you.The future looks bright for AYN. And with a recent tease of a new AYN Loki Handheld, we can see them claiming spots on our lists of best handheld games consoles for years to come.
But obviously those three titans of gaming produce the most reliable and replayable gaming consoles you will find.So is the Nintendo Switch any different? Absolutely not. It is easily one of the best gaming consoles ever created. Ever.
The company was once known for its superb build quality, near perfect console design, and some of the best emulation performance out of any device made specifically for retro games.And we can say that, without a doubt, where ANBERNIC hit their pinnacle was in the RG351MP device.
What can we say about this perfect gaming console?Well, the thing is a beauty. Beautiful to look at. Beautiful to hold. Beautiful game play performance. Really, it is just the perfect example of an RK3326 chipset device for retro game emulation.
There is no emulation here. Through FGPA technology, the Analogue Pocket essentially is a Game Boy, as far as the game cartridge knows.Yes, FGPA technology means that everything inside the Analogue Pocket should perform identical to the original Game Boy hardware.
As the name suggests, this is the pro version of the original console, made all that much better with a much more powerful Unisoc Quad-core Tiger T310 chipset, a touchscreen (eliminating our main complaint about the first iteration), and now running on Android 9. These changes, plus a few other quality-of-life modifications have resulted in a near perfect gaming device for retro games up to the 64-bit era.
This beautiful gaming device, designed by Teenage Engineering, features a small hand crank which opens up some pretty unique game play features for game developers.Oh, and speaking of developers, did we mention that they have their own dedicated development kit to create games for the console? How cool is that?!
By supporting PlayDate you are supporting new ideas. You are supporting retro gaming. And you would be doing yourself a favor to add one of the most unique gaming consoles to your personal collection.
The Nintendo Switch OLED isn't a vital upgrade for current Switch owners. But if you haven't yet invested in Nintendo's hybrid handheld, the OLED is the model to get. This version of the Switch features a seven-inch OLED screen, a sturdy kickstand, improved speakers and a dock with a built-in Ethernet port. Otherwise, it's exactly the same as the base Switch, which is an excellent console thanks to its extensive game library and smart portable features.
There are admittedly still a few drawbacks to the Switch OLED. Without SSD storage or 4K support, the system feels a bit dated. Four years into the console's lifespan, we may get a more significant upgrade sooner rather than later. But if you want to play the latest Mario, Metroid and Zelda games, the Switch OLED is the best way to do so.
The best handheld gaming console is arguably the one you already have on you, and that's why it's worth considering a dedicated gaming phone, like the Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro. This excellent (albeit very large) smartphone is powerful enough to run any game on Android, which means you can enjoy both casual handheld titles as well as longer sit-down-and-play experiences.
The best handheld gaming console for your needs depends on where you want to use it. If you need something that you can stash in your pocket and play absolutely anywhere, the ROG Phone 5 is the smallest, most versatile device on the list. If you want to split your game time equally between home and traveling, the Nintendo Switch is probably the best option, since you can hook it up to a TV.
For those who miss retro game handhelds like the Game Boy, you might consider putting yourself on the waiting list to order the Analogue Pocket or Panic Playdate, too, but both of those systems are more niche -- and more indie/retro targeted -- than the Switch and Steam Deck.
The Nintendo Switch is over five years old now, but Nintendo has indicated that no true successor is coming right now. A Pro model has been rumored for a while, but in the meantime the existing Switch remains extremely capable, full of great games (including lots of indie offerings), and pretty affordable considering its handheld/TV-connected dual function. The Switch has also become a fantastic source of retro games (Game Boy, NES, SNES, Genesis, N64 and more) via the subscription-based Switch Online service.
The OLED-screened Switch, which was released in October 2021, is the best Switch and our recommended pick. The more vivid and larger display looks fantastic, its rear kickstand works better for tabletop gaming, and both of these upgrades are worth the extra $50. The original Switch (or the V2 version), at $300, works similarly and is also still fine, and occasionally comes in special editions and holiday game bundles. The smaller, handheld-only Switch Lite is a great value pick at $200 for anyone who just wants a basic portable game system, but it lacks any ability to connect to a TV, and its controllers don't detach. This makes it less versatile for families, and means you can't replace the controllers if they break.
The Pocket looks like a totally remade Game Boy, and it is, in a sense. Analogue's gorgeous handheld can play original Game Boy, Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance cartridges perfectly, and can even play Sega Game Gear games using an adapter (Atari Lynx, Neo Geo Pocket and Turbografx-16 adapters are supposed to be coming soon). It has a high-res color screen and USB-C charging, and there's a separately sold dock for TV play. One of the most exciting updates to the Pocket is its support for FPGA cores that can replicate classic game hardware and play ROMs. There's no game store for buying games: Pocket is a system to play classic cartridges or other games in amazing quality, if you want to tinker around with FPGA. There's also a growing library of Pocket-compatible software in indie gaming channels like itch.io that can be sideloaded to a microSD card, too.
Tablets and phones are extremely valid game consoles: The iPad has tons of games on the App Store, and hundreds more on Apple's subscription-based Apple Arcade. The iPad can pair with Bluetooth game controllers, too. iPhones and Android phones have tons of games as well, obviously, and a number of great game controller cases are available, including the Backbone and the Razer Kishi.
The Steam Deck has been on the market for just over a year, but it's unclear when and if Valve will ever choose to upgrade it with better processors or newer features. And right now, Microsoft and Sony have stayed out of the handheld gaming picture.
Logitech's streaming-only G Cloud handheld is a similar proposition, but with its controls attached to the device. These handhelds could be pointing to how more console/PC accessories could pop up as home handhelds to stream games away from a TV, but right now you're probably better off using your phone or tablet and a game controller to do pretty much the same thing.
My kids alternate between iPad gaming and the Nintendo Switch. The Switch is without a doubt the best kid console, with the most family-friendly game library and best parental control settings. Still, be prepared to get annoyed at buying multiple copies of games and trudging through the process of creating multiple Switch family accounts.
This console features a unique design that allows it to seamlessly transform from a mobile gaming device into a home game system. When you place the Switch in its dock, it automatically switches to allow gaming on the big screen.
The console offers an extensive set of accessories, as well as five hours of battery life, and it's available in several different color configurations. If you want to game on the go, you can't go wrong with a Switch.
Besides the screen, the other major difference between this, the Switch Lite, and the standard Nintendo Switch is that the console has new buttons and an improved kickstand. Overall, if you can afford to splurge on the Switch OLED (and have enough luck finding one in stock), it's without an ounce of doubt the best Switch money can buy.
The console offers superb controls, a robust gameplay experience, and surprisingly entertaining sound. We also appreciate that the gadget is equipped with a USB-C connector for charging. So, you can use other charging cords you have around the house.
You can order the Lite in several eye-catching colors: yellow, turquoise, and gray. Because its Joy-Cons cannot detach from its body, the console feels much more robust, sturdy, and durable than the regular Switch. The Switch Lite can't be docked to play games on the big screen, though, so if you game on the go instead of at home, the Switch Lite is the better option.
An emulator is hardware or software that lets one device behave like another. This handheld allows you to play classic games from old consoles like the NES, SNES, PS1, or Game Boy. It's not as simple as just firing up an App Store to download the games, though it is super fun.
This crank has led to many inventive gaming experiences, and the console makers drew in many great indie devs to contribute, like the minds behind Cursed to Golf, Chuhai Labs, Bennet Foddy of Getting Over It fame, or Return of the Obra Dinn creator Lucas Pope. 041b061a72